Given it is that time of the year within the Kyrios Empire, this scene of some maidservant or butlers waking up their young masters and young ladies is all too common of a commotion, said masters and ladies also having quite the mix of feeling as they are about to experience things that not only can, but will change the flow of their entire lives.
That event is none other than the entrance exams or trials for the upcoming batch of aspiring freshmen for the Lumencia Academy, an event that is not only a test of pure combat power and talent, but survival abilities, leadership and diplomatic skills as well.
Of course, given that it is a trial that houses most, if not all of not only the Kyrios Empire's but also neighboring sovereignties' most talented young individuals, there's just no way for anyone to know what is truly happening during these trials, the only ones who are aware of the nature of said trials being those who had experienced it in the past, and even then, the academy always makes it so that the trials are at the very least a little different than how it was in the past.
This also means that even if one's parents and elders were also people who passed, or at least, experienced the Lumencia Academy's entrance trials, they are only given an idea on the working of things, not that they will obtain legitimate information about the trials that they will be a part of, this making the trials a little bit fairer between everyone.
Hence the reason why even the most talented of individuals, descendants of great noble houses with magic flowing through their bloodline, battle-tested individuals whose secret weapon are the experiences they have during their time outside, blessed people born not only with silver, but even golden spoon in their mouth who have their backing's entire wealth and fortune to push them stronger, all kinds of blessed children of fortune and chosen of heaven are preparing themselves in all the ways they can.
Well, while there are those who are already more than talented and gifted enough but still worries about the possible outcome of the trials, there are also people on the opposite end of the spectrum, not even a bit worried as to how they will perform during the entrance trials, and one such person has yet to completely prepare himself for the trial right now, when there is only a couple of hours left before the trial starts.
"Young master, everything is ready…"
"Alright, I'm going out, tell the old man that I just need a few more minutes"
"Yes, young master"
"You may leave now"
With a knock on the door snapping him out of his focus on cultivation, a young man of tall, sculpted stature replies in acknowledgement as he opens his eyes, from deep beneath those sharp gaze, hide what appears to be bright, burning stars that holds power incomprehensible to normal mind, those shining light receding back into the depths of his being just moments it revealed itself.
Feeling the presence of the housemaid from beyond the door of his room now leaving the moment her message is acknowledged, the young man smiles as he takes a good, long and deep breath, the air feeling quite lively to the point that he couldn't help but wonder whether it is only his imagination that it tingles his lungs, making him feel that his body is far more vigorous and filled with life than ever before.
'I've reached farther than I expected'
Days and weeks passed from when this young man had an encounter, or rather, specifically met with a person he had known from his previous life, the only archivist of the Kyrios Empire's entire river of history, the immortal maiden and the guide he once had before he eventually found himself in the world of cultivation once his birth world plunges into its eventual demise.
And right now, just a few moments until he finally shows himself to the world during this life, the young man couldn't help but smile in satisfaction as he uses his senses to get a look at the current state of his body, the steady, powerful beating of his heart that sends energy all throughout his flesh, organs and bones.
Not only that, but from the opposite side of his heart, the beat being matched in rhythm by yet another beat by his meridian-core, the circulation of spirit energy through his meridian powered by both the powerful, violent and destructive nature of the Nine Star Palace Scripture and the all-encompassing power of the Pure Heaven True Circulation Art pushing his strength even further, making him feel like his body is far lighter than it should be, as if he doesn't weigh anything at all.
If another cultivator were to see things from the lens the young man is seeing his body with, they will realize that within his body, the meridian-core that only some people theorize the existence of proves itself not only true but extremely beneficial as well, every single drop of spirit energy entering the young man's body being refined as if it is being crushed into fine dust before the body absorbs it without end.
Should they continue looking even with shock of a meridian-core however, they will witness something that is far more absurd than the already absurd organ that is practically being deemed as nothing but a myth, as inside said organ, great amount of spirit energy swirls around, forming thick, mist-like substance that appears to be even denser and heavier than water despite its gaseous state, something that even the greatest of minds among the firmament would struggle to wrap their head around.
This thick gas doesn't appear to be stationary as well, as it sways and dance, like a massive sea of mystery as every single drop of this mystical mist revolves around multiple, massive, hot, glowing bodies of light that seems to illuminate the darkness of the young man's meridian core.
'Three stars… Not to mention the fourth star is already starting to form as well'
As the young man mutters to himself, he couldn't help but become unable to stop his smile from getting wider as he had a far greater harvest than what he was initially expecting, the number of stars forming within his meridian core signifying the level of progress he had attained after all his hard work ever since he had returned to his younger self.
After toiling for long, enduring the challenges of immense pain, not to mention the extreme uncertainty of venturing into an unknown territory of cultivation, this young man's cultivation finally starts progressing in its earnest, and within the span of time between his first step into the Body Refining Realm all the way to now, he managed to reach the peak of this realm's third stage in a speed that he never even dreamed of before.
Hence with this strength in his sleeves along with the knowledge and experienced he had gained from his previous life, the young man stood up from his bed as he stopped his meditation, his body still maintaining the circulation of spirit energy as it absorbs everything around it even without his guidance, the same smile never leaving his face as he moves forward, opening the door with a look of anticipation, looking forward to the things that are about to come.